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EX  LIBRIS  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 


JOHN  HENRY  NASH  LIBRARY 

<S>  SAN  FRANCISCO  <$> 

PRESENTED  TO  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

ROBERT  GORDON  SPROUL,  PRESIDENT. 
«>    BY"  <*> 


Ma.AM)MR$.MILTON  S.RAY 
CECILY,  VIRGINIA  AND  ROSALYN  RAY 

AND  THE 

RAY  OIL  BURNER  ODMPANY 


SAN  FRANCISCO 
NEW  YORK 


THE    ME-NE-HU-NES 


THE  MENEHUNES 


THEIR  ADVENTURES  WITH 
THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HOW 
THEY  BUILT  THE  CANOE 


EMILY   FOSTER    DAY 


ILLUSTRATIONS  BY 
SPENCER   WRIGHT 


PAUL    ELDER    AND    COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS,  SAN  FRANCISCO 


Copyright,  1905 

by  PAUL  ELDER  AND  COMPANY 

San  Francisco 


The  Tomoye  Press 
San  Francisco 


Let  me  introduce  to  you  'The  Me-ne-hu- 
nes.  Every  one  in  Hawaii  knows  them, 
and  now  that  they  are  "annexed"  to  the 
United  States,  with  the  rest  of  the  beautiful 
little  country,  and  are  good,  loyal  Ameri- 
cans, you  should  know  them  too. 

To  the  best  of  my  knowledge  none  of  my 
friends  —  even  my  Hawaiian  friends — 
have  actually  seen  the  mysterious  little 
people  of  the  rocks,  but  the  ancient  folk- 
lore of  the  islands  is  full  of  tales  of  their 
wonderful  works;  and  if  any  one  wants 
more  proof —  why,  there  is  the  great  water- 
course of  Kauai,  cut  through  the  .solid 
rock, —  no  man  knows  by  whom  else, — and 
the  Hill  of  the  Shrimps  where  the  Mene- 
hunes  received  their  reward  from  good 
King  Ola  and  his  wise  high  priest.  But 
that  would  make  another  tale. —  £.  F.  D. 


^  ^-"-^^^yi^ 

THE    MENEHUNES  | 


Some  one  had  committed  a  mon- 
strous crime!  Deep  in  the  heart  of 
the  forest  of  Hilo  one  of  the  gigantic 
old  koa  trees,  whose  leaves  were  shaped 
like  the  new  moon,  lay  prone  on  the 
ground,  its  mighty  branches  crushed, 
its  sturdy  roots  hacked  and  torn  from 
the  soil. 

For  hours  it  had  lain  in  the  blister- 
ing heat  of  the  tropical  sun,  its  life-sap 
dripping  from  the  ragged  wounds,  its 
beautiful  leaves  hanging  limp  on  shriv- 
eled stems.  At  last  the  lengthening 
shadows  grew  thick  and  dusky,  the 
amber  glow  faded  from  the  sky,  and 
cool,  gentle  night  wrapped  the  fallen 
giant  in  sheltering  darkness. 

Then  through  the  still  forest  there 
stole  a  sound  like  the  rustle  of  dry 


THE    MENEHUNES 


mur- 


leaves  stirred  by  the  wind.  The 
mur  grew,  it  spread  through  the  woods, 
and  up  into  the  highest  reaches  of  the 
mountains;  the  ferns  and  long  grasses 
swayed  in  the  breathless  air,  and  from 
the  rocks  and  mossy  coverts  poured  a 
hurrying  throng  of  Menehunes,  the 
tiny  dwarf  folk  of  Hawaii,  who  planted 
every  tree  and  fern  and  shrub  in  the 
great,  wTide  woods.  Gesticulating  wildly 
the  little  brown  people  swarmed  about 
the  prostrate  tree  like  fallen  leaves  caught 
in  a  whirlwind.  They  scrambled  into 
the  branches  and  scolded,  they  perched 
on  the  upturned  roots  and  denounced 
the  vandal  who  had  committed  the 
dreadful  deed.  From  root  to  crown 
they  covered  the  massive  trunk,  and  still 
the  forest  rustled  with  their  coming. 


TH  E    MEN  EH  u  N  E  s 

"  It  is  the  work  of  a  canoe  builder," 
said  the  one  with  the  cloak  and  helmet 
of  fine  yellow  feathers.  "  I  know,  for 
they  cut  the  roots  below  the  ground  so 
as  to  lose  none  of  the  length  of  the 
tree."  But  his  voice  was  scarcely  heard 
above  the  wrathful  clamor. 

Then  suddenly  the  noise  ceased  and 
the  Menehunes  scattered  through  the 
forest  in  all  directions.  Some  sped  down 
over  the  lower  hillsides  gathering  the 
long  grass,  and  as  they  ran  they  wove  it 
into  strong,  tough  cords;  others  swiftly 
hewed  and  trimmed  away  the  broken 
branches,  and  bound  the  oozing  cuts 
with  loam;  still  others  dug  the  soil 
from  about  the  maimed  roots  till  they 
rested  above  a  deep  hole  in  the  ground; 
and  at  midnight  they  were  ready  for 


THE    MENEHUNES 


the  real  work.  To  every  twig  on 
every  branch  on  the  upper  side  of  the 
fallen  tree  they  tied  a  tiny  rope,  and 
passed  them  all  over  the  stoutest  limbs 
of  the  tallest  trees,  and  scores  and  scores 
of  the  little  people  laid  hold  of  each 
line.  They  braced  their  feet  against 
the  rocks,  and  tugged  and  pulled  till 
their  round  eyes  bulged  and  their  cheeks 
puffed  out  like  balloons.  Under  the 
great  trunk  hundreds  of  little  backs 
bent  to  the  utmost  strain.  Slowly, 
very  slowly,  the  old  koa  tree  rose  from 
the  ground,  an  inch,  then  an  ell.  The 
moon  came  out  from  behind  a  cloud 
to  watch,  and  the  stars  forgot  to  wink 
in  the  tense  excitement.  Up,  up,  every 
man  pulling  his  hardest;  at  last  the 
great  roots  dropped  into  the  hole,  and 

//! 


the  lines  suddenly  loosening,  the  Mene- 
hunes  turned  somersaults  till  they  landed 
in  a  heap  in  the  bed  of  a  tiny  stream. 

While  the  morning  star  still  shone  in 
the  heavens,  the  little  people  stood  tri- 
umphantly about  the  tree  that  again 
towered  skywards,  and  mopped  their 
hot  faces  with  the  cool  leaves  of  the 
ferns.  But  as  the  gray-blue  sky  began 
to  redden  at  the  approach  of  the  sun, 
they  drifted  away  out  of  sight,  and  the 
whole  forest  drowsed  in  the  sleepy  dawn. 

Hardly,  though,  had  the  last  Mene- 
hune  disappeared  when  Laka,  the  canoe 
builder,  strode  through  the  forest  jun- 
gle and  paused  in  the  koa  grove,  looking 
about  him  in  dubious  wonder.  Every 
tree  stood  in  stately  dignity;  and  so  far 
as  mortal  eyes  could  see,  not  a  stone 


THE    MENEHUNES 


had  been  turned  for  ages,  not  a  handful 
of  earth  disturbed  since  the  first  fallen 
leaves  changed  to  mold,  for  the  Mene- 
hunes  work  well,  and  they  work  without 
hurry. 

Down  the  brown  back  of  the  man 
crept  a  chill  of  fear;  then  he  shrugged 
his  shoulders  defiantly,  and  again  choos- 
ing a  tree  that  suited  his  purpose,  one 
after  another  he  slashed  off  the  long 
roots  where  they  dug  deep  into  the 
soil,  and  before  the  sun  set  another  hale 
old  giant  of  the  woods  lay  quivering 
on  its  torn  branches. 

It  was  a  hard  day's  work,  and  the 
tired  man  shouldered  his  ax  and  trudged 
down  the  mountain  to  his  cabin  by  the 
sea.  But  when  in  the  morning  he  re- 
turned to  the  forest  to  trim  the  log  to 


THE    MENEHUNES 


the  length  of  a  canoe,  not  even  a  chip 
of  all  those  that  had  fallen  from  his  ax 
the  day  before  remained  to  mark  the 
spot.  The  trees  all  stood  in  their 
primeval  grandeur,  grave,  august,  stu- 
pendously wise;  for  again  the  little 
people  of  the  forest  had  perfectly  done 
their  work. 

Laka  was  angry.  With  a  swinging 
blow  of  his  ax  that  awoke  the  rolling 
echoes,  he  attacked  another  big  tree 
with  the  moon-shaped  leaves,  and  so 
savage  were  the  blows  he  rained  upon 
it  that,  long  before  the  day  was  done, 
it,  too,  crashed  to  the  earth.  Then  he 
took  his  calabash  out  of  the  net  in 
which  he  had  hung  it  from  a  branch, 
and  sat  down  to  his  meager  supper  of 
poi  and  dried  fish.  By  and  by,  after  he 


1 


THE    MENEHUNES 


had  finished  and  there  was  nothing  more 
to  do  but  wait,  he  crept  into  the  shelter 
of  the  thick  leaves  and  fell  asleep. 

When  he  awoke  it  was  still  early. 
The  southern  cross  was  barely  above 
the  horizon,  though  the  last  ray  of  the 
short  twilight  had  long  ago  hidden 
away  in  the  rift  between  the  sea  and 
the  sky.  Across  the  heavens  like  a 
tattered  veil  streamed  the  Milky  Way, 
and  the  stars,  set  deep  in  the  blue  vault, 
seemed  to  crackle  and  snap,  so  still  and 
dark  and  silent  lay  the  island  world 
beneath  them. 

Even  in  the  highest  reaches  of  the 
mountain  forest  the  leaves  of  the  trees 
and  the  giant  ferns  hung  motionless 
under  the  spell  of  the  witching  night, 
and  here  and  there  in  the  clear  patch 


es 


among  the  trees  the  starlight  glistened 
along  the  loop  of  a  wet  vine  or  lit  up 
a  hanging  dewdrop  like  a  tiny  lamp. 

Laka  lay  still  in  his  leafy  shelter 
and  watched  while  the  moon  rose  and 
flooded  the  space  about  the  fallen  tree 
with  a  clear,  silvery  light.  Stealthily 
the  first  rustle  of  a  hurrying  host  again 
sounded  through  the  woods;  the  soft 
patter  grew  till  it  filled  the  air  like  the 
hum  of  a  teakettle  over  a  fire,  and  be- 
fore his  eyes  the  Menehunes  bounded 
through  the  thickets  and  crowded  into 
the  open  about  his  hiding-place,  chat- 
tering angrily  at  this  new  outrage. 

Laka  waited  till  they  were  well 
within  his  reach,  then  he  snatched 
three  of  the  little  men  and  popped 
them,  one  after  the  other,  into  the 


V 


calabash  and  drew  the  net  over  them. 
Like  shadows  the  band  melted  away, 
but  from  every  shelter  he  saw  the 
round,  bright  eyes  watching  him  anx- 
iously. He  crawled  out  from  under 
the  branches  and  set  the  calabash  down 
before  him. 

"Now,"  he  said,  "let  us  talk  a  little 
about  this  affair  of  the  trees." 

"We  can't  talk  in  this  hole,"  said 
one  of  the  little  men,  indignantly. 
"You  didn't  wash  your  calabash  after 
supper!" 

"Oh,  you'd  like  to  get  out  and  run 
away,  wouldn't  you!"  exclaimed  Laka, 
with  a  triumphant  grin. 

"We  couldn't  run  if  we  were  out," 
said  another  of  the  three.  "We  are 
so  covered  with  your  sticky /><?/  that  we'd 


^^c&s^sS 

( '+£*&££2*&w&;&]zy4 

;T  'li£:2itl 

/  / /  (.         ' \~?.?:t-*  v  „?:  V4'1 
\/  'N  Hx 


THE    MENEHUNES 


gather  stones  and  leaves  like  a  ball  of 
snow  rolled  from  the  top  of  Mauna 
Kea.  Besides,  we  give  you  our  word, 
and  that  a  Menehune  never  breaks." 

When  Laka  removed  the  net  the 
three  little  men  clamored  stiffly  from  the 
bowl,  and  each  sat  carefully  down  on  a 
clean  fern  frond.  A  ripple  of  derisive 
laughter  floated  out  from  the  shadows. 

"  Do  you  know,"  said  Laka,  sternly, 
"you  little  people  have  wasted  two 
whole  days  for  me?" 

"But  the  forest  is  ours,  and  you 
are  wasting  our  trees!"  they  exclaimed, 
angrily. 

"Ay,  I  know,  but  a  canoe  I  must 
have,"  stubbornly  answered  Laka ;  "  one 
large  enough  and  strong  enough  to 
cross  the  stormy  channel.  We  on  the 


THE    MENEHUNES 


ra 


coast  are  fishermen,  and  our  canoes  are 
small.  Last  week  a  storm  arose  while 
my  father  was  on  the  sea.  He  never 
returned,  and  our  wise  men  say  that  his 
boat  was  blown  across  to  the  Maui 
shore.  My  mother  weeps  on  the  sand 
by  the  edge  of  the  waves  and  will  not 
eat.  I  must  bring  my  father  back  or 
she  will  die.  Three  times  with  great 
labor  I  have  felled  a  tree,  and  I  have 
yet  to  hew  the  canoe." 

While  Laka  spoke,  the  Menehunes, 
reassured,  crept  out  from  their  hiding- 
places  and  stood  about  him  in  a  half- 
circle,  listening  with  sympathy  in  their 
big,  somber  eyes. 

"It  is  a  good  cause,"  said  one  of  the 
captured  three,  glancing  stiffly  around 
at  his  companions. 


THE    MENEHUNES 


"Even  a  tree  could  serve  no  better 
purpose,"  another  said  with  imposing 
dignity,  though  much  of  it  was  undoubt- 
edly due  to  the  quality  and  quantity  of 
the  pot  on.  his  back;  and  the  third,  who 
seemed  of  high  importance,  though  his 
helmet  stuck  fast  to  one  ear,  said: 

"We,  the  little  people  of  the  forest, 
will  make  your  canoe.  Return  to  the 
village  by  the  sea  and  build  a  shelter 
of  cocoanut  leaves  on  the  beach.  Spread 
a  supper  for  us  under  the  shed,  for  we 
shall  be  hungry  by  the  time  we  have 
carried  your  boat  down  the  mountain, 
and  the  night  will  be  too  far  spent  for 
us  to  find  our  own  food.  Also,  see  to 
it  that  no  one  spies  upon  us.  Aloha!" 
And  all  of  the  Menehunes  said  in  cho- 
rus, "Aloha  nui!" 


V 


THE    MENEHUNES 


"Aloha!"  said  Laka,  picking  up  his 
calabash.  He  looked  regretfully  at  the 
three  who  were  smeared  all  over  with 
the  dull  gray  poi9  but  they  waved  him 
away,  and  he  left  the  forest  without 
once  looking  back,  for  that  would  have 
been  most  impolite  according  to  the 
customs  of  the  forest,, 

When  the  three  little  men  who  had 
been  in  the  calabash  rose  from  the 
ground,  the  fern  leaves  clung  to  their 
backs,  for  poi  holds  fast  what  it  touches. 
Then,  for  full  five  minutes  by  the 
Menehunes'  clock  in  the  sky,  the  cap- 
tives writhed  and  twisted;  but  the  fern 
stems  were  tough,  and  not  one  among 
all  their  friends  held  out  a  helping 
hand.  Instead,  they  stood  around  in  a 
circle  and  laughed  till  their  little  knees 


THE    MENEHUNES 


weakened;  then  they  dropped  on  the 
ground  and  rocked  themselves  in  breath- 
less glee  until,  at  last,  the  three  broke 
their  bonds,  fell  upon  the  foremost  of 
the  mocking  crowd,  and  pummeled 
them  well. 

Just  how  the  Menehunes  fashioned 
the  canoe,  no  one  knows,  but  the  next 
morning,  when  Laka  went  to  the  beach, 
there  in  the  shelter  he  had  built  lay 
the  slim,  graceful  craft,  perfect  from 
stem  to  stern ;  and  every  morsel  of  the 
feast  that  Laka  had  spread  for  the 
Menehunes  was  gone. 


